High voltage transistor structure

ABSTRACT

An embodiment of a structure provides an enhanced performing high voltage device, configured as a lateral diffused MOS (HV LDMOS) formed in a tri-well structure (a small n-well in an extended p-type well inside an n-type well) within the substrate with an anti-punch through layer and a buried layer below the n-type well, which reduces substrate leakage current to almost zero. The drain region is separated into two regions, one within the small n-well and one contacting the outer n-type well such that the substrate is available for electric potential lines during when a high drain voltage is applied.

PRIORITY CLAIM

The present application is a Continuation application of U.S.application Ser. No. 14/533,822, filed Nov. 5, 2014, now issued as U.S.Pat. No. 9,257,533, which is a Divisional U.S. application Ser. No.13/673,734, filed Nov. 9, 2012, now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 8,969,913,which claims the priority to U.S. Provisional Application No.61/579,794, filed Dec. 23, 2011, the disclosures of all of which areincorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to semiconductor technology,and more particularly, to high voltage semiconductor devices and methodsof making the same.

BACKGROUND

Technological advances in semiconductor integrated circuit (IC)materials, design, processing, and manufacturing have enabledever-shrinking IC devices, where each generation has smaller and morecomplex circuits than the previous generation.

As semiconductor circuits composed of devices such asmetal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs) are adaptedfor high voltage applications, such as high voltage lateral diffusionmetal-oxide-semiconductor devices (HV LDMOSs) including high voltageinsulated gate bipolar transistors (HV IGBTs), problems arise withrespect to decreasing voltage performance as the scaling continues withadvanced technologies. To prevent punch-through between source anddrain, or to reduce resistance of source and drain, standard MOSfabrication process flows may be accompanied by multiple implantationsof high concentrations. Substantial substrate leakage and voltagebreakdown often occur with device reliability degradation.

Performance of a HV MOS transistor is often limited by its substrateleakage and breakdown voltage (BV) threshold. Substantial substrateleakage reduces switching speed and increases likelihood of unwantedparasitic bipolar junction (BJT) turn-on and latch-up. While variousmethods including use of full or partial silicon-on-insulator (SOI)substrates has been developed to reduce substrate leakage, a HV LDMOSdevice having a low substrate leakage and a high breakdown voltagethreshold and a method for making the same in a cost effective mannercontinues to be sought.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Aspects of the present disclosure are best understood from the followingdetailed description when read with the accompanying figures. It isemphasized that, in accordance with the standard practice in theindustry, various features are not drawn to scale. In fact, thedimensions of the various features may be arbitrarily increased orreduced for clarity of discussion.

FIGS. 1A and 1B are cross-sectional views of two types of conventionalhigh voltage lateral diffusion metal oxide semiconductor (HV LDMOS)transistor devices.

FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional view of a HV LDMOS transistor according tovarious embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 2B and 2C are sectional top views of HV LDMOS transistorsaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a plot of a hole current into a substrate modeled using acomparative HV LDMOS and an HV LDMOS embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 4 is a plot of model electric potential across the same cut lineduring transistor operation for the comparative HV LDMOS and an HV LDMOSembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are flow charts of a method for fabricating a HV LDMOSdevice according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6A to 61 are cross sections of a HV LDMOS device embodiment of thepresent disclosure in various stages of manufacturing according to someembodiments of the present disclosure.

Various embodiments of the present invention will be explained in detailwith reference to the accompanying drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure relates to semiconductor high voltage lateraldiffusion metal oxide semiconductor (HV LDMOS) transistors having lowsubstrate leakage and high breakdown voltage thresholds and a method forfabricating such devices. It is understood that the following disclosureprovides many different embodiments, or examples, for implementingdifferent features of the invention. Specific examples of components andarrangements are described below to simplify the present disclosure.These are, of course, merely examples and are not intended to belimiting. In addition, the present disclosure may repeat referencenumerals and/or letters in the various examples. This repetition is forthe purpose of simplicity and clarity and does not in itself dictate arelationship between the various embodiments and/or configurationsdiscussed. Moreover, the formation of a first feature over or on asecond feature in the description that follows may include embodimentsin which the first and second features are formed in direct contact, andmay also include embodiments in which additional features may be formedinterposing the first and second features, such that the first andsecond features may not be in direct contact.

Spatially relative terms, such as “beneath,” “below,” “lower,” “above,”“upper”, “over” and the like, may be used herein for ease of descriptionto describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s)or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood thatthe spatially relative terms are intended to encompass differentorientations of the device in use or operation in addition to theorientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in thefigures is turned over, elements described as being “below” or “beneath”other elements or features would then be oriented “above” the otherelements or features. Thus, the exemplary term “below” can encompassboth an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwiseoriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatiallyrelative descriptors used herein may likewise be interpretedaccordingly.

FIG. 1A is a cross-sectional view of a conventional HV LDMOS transistor.In FIG. 1A, an n-type HV MOS device 100 is fabricated in a p-substrate101. A deep n-well (n-drift) 102 is formed in the substrate 101. A fieldoxide 108 is formed over the n-well 102 and a gate 140 is partlyoverlying the field oxide 108. A source and a drain are formed onopposite sides of the gate 140. The source includes a pair of oppositelydoped regions p+ (132) and n+ (133) contained in a p-well 104. Sourceterminal 130 is electrically connected to the source regions 132 and133. On one side of gate 140 and at the edge of field oxide 108, n+doped drain region 120 is formed in n-well 102 and electricallyconnected to a drain terminal 120. A p-top region 105 is formed betweenfield oxide 108 and the deep implanted n-drift region 102. The p-topregion 105 is a floating layer and is not connected to the source or thedrain region.

FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of another conventional HV LDMOSdevice 150. Unlike device 100 in FIG. 1A, device 150 has the p-top layerreplaced by a buried p-well 155. In FIG. 1B, an n-type HV LDMOS device150 is fabricated in a p-substrate 151. A deep n-well (n-drift) 152 isformed in the substrate 151. A field oxide 158 is formed on the n-well152 and a gate 190 is partly overlying the field oxide 158. A source anda drain are formed on either side of the gate 190. The source includes ap-type region p+ (182) and an n-type region N+ (183), both contained ina p-well 154. Source terminal 180 is electrically connected to sourceregions 182 and 183. On the opposite side of gate 190 and at the edge offield oxide 158, n+ doped drain region 153 is formed in n-well 152 andis electrically connected to a drain terminal 170. A deep implantedregion p-well 155 is formed in the middle of the deep implanted n-driftregion 152 and is also under but not connected to field oxide 158. Theburied p-well region 155 is a floating layer and is not connected to thesource or the drain region.

The present disclosure discloses a HV LDMOS transistor, particularly aninsulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) that has improved substrateleakage and breakdown voltage than the transistors of FIGS. 1A and 1B.Substrate leakage during device operation can trigger a parasiticbipolar junction transistor (BJT) turn-on and lead to device latch-upand/or burn out. A latch-up circuit is a type of short circuit with alow-impedance path between parasitic structures. The parasitic structureis usually equivalent to a thyristor, apositive-negative-positive-negative (PNPN) structure which acts as apositive-negative-positive (PNP) and a negative-positive-negative (NPN)transistor stacked next to each other. During a latch-up when one of thetransistors is conducting, the other one begins conducting too. Thetransistors both keep each other in saturation for as long as thestructure is forward-biased and some current flows through thetransistors. A latch-up circuit can cause a product to fail.

The HV LDMOS of the present disclosure uses a U-shaped second well thatisolates hole current at a portion of the drain junction. The U-shapedsecond well effectively forms and directs hole current across thetransistor by creating a low potential conduit and blocks hole carrierinjection into the substrate. Because more holes flow through the lowpotential conduit, less current is leaked through the substrate. Duringhigh drain voltage and transistor off condition, a buried layer having ahigher dopant concentration outside of the second well directs highpotential through the substrate, and an anti-punch through layer below aportion of the drain structure reduces the high potential through theinner U-shape and the second well regions. The buried layer reduces thebeta gain of a PNP junction that includes elements from the drain sidevertically down to the substrate. Thus, the buried layer and anti-punchthrough layer increase the breakdown voltage for the HV LDMOS with theU-shape second well while the U-shaped second well significantly reduceshole current substrate leakage.

FIG. 2A shows a cross-sectional view of a HV LDMOS transistor 200according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. The HV LDMOSof FIG. 2A is a transistor having low substrate leakage and goodbreakdown voltage (BV) threshold without using expensive silicon oninsulator (SOI) substrates and difficult-to-implement processes. The HVLDMOS 200 may be a high voltage insulated gate bipolar transistors (HVIGBT). In FIG. 2A, a lightly doped substrate 201 having a first type ofconductivity is provided. In the present embodiment, the HV LDMOStransistor 200 is an n-type HV LDMOS, and thus, the substrate 201includes a p-type silicon substrate (p-substrate). The substrate mayinclude a semiconductor wafer, such as a silicon wafer. Alternatively orin addition in other embodiments, the substrate includes otherelementary semiconductors, such as germanium, or a compoundsemiconductor, such as silicon carbide, gallium arsenic, indiumarsenide, and indium phosphide. The substrate may include an alloysemiconductor, such as silicon germanium, silicon germanium carbide,gallium arsenic phosphide, and gallium indium phosphide.

An implant process is used to create buried layers 202 and 203 at andbelow portions of a top surface 205 of the substrate 201 using a dopantthat creates a second type of conductivity layer. For example, for ap-type substrate the buried layer would be n-type. The buried layers 202and 203 have different peak dopant concentrations. The dopants may besame or different. According to various embodiments, the buried layer203 under a portion of the drain has a higher peak dopant concentrationthan the buried layer 202. In some embodiments, the peak dopantconcentration of buried layer 203 is about twice that of the peak dopantconcentration of buried layer 202. After subsequent annealing and otherprocesses, the buried layer 203 grows into adjacent layers as shown inFIG. 2A above the substrate top surface 205.

A first well 207 is formed over the substrate 201, the first well havinga different type of conductivity from the substrate. For example, thesubstrate has a p-type conductivity and the first well has an n-typeconductivity. In the present embodiment, the first well 207 is anN-Drift (n-well) formed over the p-substrate 201 by an epitaxial processusing a dopant.

A second well 209 is formed in the first well 207, the second well 209having the same type of conductivity as the substrate 201. The secondwell 209 may be referred as a P-body. The second well 209 may havedifferent portions, each portion having a different location and depthin the first well 207 from the other portions. Two or three portions maybe formed in separate doping processes. For example, shown in FIG. 2A,the second well P-Body 209 has three portions: a portion 209 a, whichsurrounds source regions 224 and 226, a portion 209 b, which extends outfrom the portion 209 a in a direction towards the drain structure 228and 230, and a portion 209 c between different parts of the drainstructure. The three portions of the P-Body are attached to each otherforming a U-shape. The ends of the U-shape are portions 209 a and 209 c.The bottom of the U-shape is portion 209 b. The second well 209separates the first well 207 into two portions 207 a and 207 b. Thefirst well portion 207 b is surrounded by the second well 209 and thefirst well portion 207 a surrounds the second well 209.

The N-Drift may have an n-type dopant such as phosphorus, and the P-Bodymay have a p-type dopant such as boron. In one embodiment, the N-Driftand P-Body may be formed by a plurality of processing steps, whether nowknown or to be developed, such as growing a sacrificial oxide on thesubstrate, opening a pattern for the location(s) of the P-Body regionsor N-Drift region, and implanting the impurities. The three portions maybe formed in three separately performed implantations using two or threemasks. The three portions may also be formed in two separately performedimplantation using two masks, where portions 290 a and 290 c areimplanted together with one or more implantation steps. In oneembodiment, the three portions each have a different dopantconcentration profile and different peak dopant concentrations.

Two field insulating layers 208 and 210 separate the gate and the drainstructures. The field insulating layer 208 separates the gate structurefrom the drain structure. The field insulating layer 210 separatesdifferent portions 228 and 230 of the drain structure and is disposedover the third portion 209 c of the second well 209. A gate structure245 and 240 has a first portion overlying the first well N-Drift 207 band a second portion overlying the second well P-Body 209 (209 a). Thegate structure includes a gate dielectric 240 and a gate electrode 245formed on the gate dielectric 240. The gate dielectric 240 may include asilicon oxide layer suitable for high voltage applications.Alternatively, the gate dielectric 240 may optionally include a high-kdielectric material, silicon oxynitride, other suitable materials, orcombinations thereof. The high-k material may be selected from metaloxides, metal nitrides, metal silicates, transition metal-oxides,transition metal-nitrides, transition metal-silicates, oxynitrides ofmetals, metal aluminates, zirconium silicate, zirconium aluminate,hafnium oxide, or combinations thereof. The gate dielectric 240 may havea multilayer structure, such as one layer of silicon oxide and anotherlayer of high-k material. The gate dielectric 240 may be formed usingchemical vapor deposition (CVD), physical vapor deposition (PVD), atomiclayer deposition (ALD), thermal oxide, other suitable processes, orcombinations thereof.

The gate electrode 245 is coupled to metal interconnects 216 anddisposed overlying the gate dielectric 240. The gate electrode 245 mayinclude a doped or non-doped polycrystalline silicon (or polysilicon).Alternatively, the gate electrode layer 245 may include a metal, such asAl, Cu, W, Ti, Ta, TiN, TaN, NiSi, CoSi, other suitable conductivematerials, or combinations thereof. The gate electrode layer 245 may beformed by CVD, PVD, ALD, plating, and other processes. The gateelectrode layer may have a multilayer structure and may be formed in amultiple-step process.

An anti-punch through layer 211 is disposed between the two fieldinsulating layers 208 and 210 below a top surface of the first well 207.The anti-punch through layer 211 through may be a highly doped layerhaving a conductivity type that is opposite of the doped drain structure230 above the anti-punch through layer 211 and the same as the firstwell 207. The anti-punch through layer 211 has a higher dopantconcentration than the first well 207 around the anti-punch throughlayer 211. A drain structure 228 and 230 is formed in the first wellN-drift 207 and connected to drain interconnect 214 from above. Thedrain structure 228 and 230 are located across the field oxide 208 fromthe gate structure 240 and 245. The drain structure 228 is separatedfrom the drain structure 230 by the field oxide 210. During a highvoltage at the drain, the anti-punch through layer 211 preventsbreakdown of the transistor through the drain structure 230 and insteadroutes potential energy through the drain structure 228 which has lowerimpedance.

The source structure 224 and 226 is disposed in the top surface of anupper portion 209 a of the second well P-Body 209, across the gatestructure 240 and 245 from the drain structure 228 and 220. In someembodiments, the source has two oppositely doped regions 224 and 226,both formed in the top surface of the upper portion 209 a of the secondwell P-Body 209 and both connected to source interconnect 218 fromabove. A first region 226 of the source structure and the drainstructure 230 may have the first type of conductivity, which is the sameas that of the substrate 201. A second region of the source structureand the drain structure 228 may have the second type of conductivity,which is the same as the first well 207. For example in FIG. 2A, thefirst region 224 and the drain structure 228 include n-type dopants,such as phosphorous or arsenic, and the second region 226 and the drainstructure 230 include p-type dopants, such as boron. The source anddrain may be formed by a method, such as ion implantation or diffusion.A rapid thermal annealing (RTA) process may be used to anneal theimplanted dopants.

FIGS. 2B and 2C are sectional top views of different embodiments of thecross section of HV LDMOS of FIG. 2A. FIG. 2B shows an embodiment wherethe HV LDMOS has an elliptical top view, an embodiment of which is acircular top view. As shown in FIG. 2B, a view B cross section isgenerated with a line drawn from the center of the elliptical top viewto an edge. A cross section of View B is the cross section of FIG. 2A.Conversely, FIG. 2A shows a View A line draw across the top surface ofthe first well 207 across various transistors elements through the fieldinsulating layers. Sectional View A is shown in FIGS. 2B and 2C indifferent embodiments.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are labeled with same element numbers for the sameelement for ease of reference. Starting at a center of the ellipticaltop view, the drain structure portion 228 is the smallest ellipse.Second field oxide 210 is the elliptical donut with solid linessurrounding the drain structure portion 228. Under the second fieldoxide 210 is the third portion 209 c of the second well, with edges ofthe well shown in dotted lines. Note that only selected transistorelements from FIG. 2A are reflected in FIG. 2B because many elements areunder the sectional View A cut. Going radially outward, the nextelliptical donut is the drain structure portion 230, and then the firstfield oxide 208, followed by the gate dielectric layer 240. The dottedline shown in the gate dielectric layer 240 denotes the edge of thefirst portion 209 a of the second well below the gate dielectric layer240. Adjacent to the gate dielectric 240 is the source structures 224and 226, followed by a small portion of exposed first portion 209 a ofthe second well. As shown, the first portion 209 a of the second wellextends from the dotted line below the gate dielectric 240 almost to theouter edge of the elliptical transistor 200 a. The outermost ellipticaldonut shows exposed regions of the first well 207. Note that portions ofthe first well 207 are disposed below the entire elliptical overview andonly a small portion is exposed. The transistor 200 a allows a drain padto be located toward a center of the elliptical structure to maximizebreakdown voltage and to reduce substrate leakage. However, packingthese structures is difficult on an IC chip, with rectangular sections,without significant non-use of silicon real estate at the corner of therectangular sections. One variation of the embodiment of FIG. 2B is toform an oval-shaped transistor, such as that of a race track. The ovalshape has fairly straight long edges as opposed to the ellipse whichcontinuously curves. The oval shape can be defined to utilize more ofthe corner areas and reduce the non-use at corners of the rectangularsections. Depending on the size of transistor required, the long edgesmay be increased or reduced as needed.

According to various embodiments, an HV LDMOS may have a sectional topview of FIG. 2C. As shown in FIG. 2C, View B is defined by a segmentfrom a centerline of drain structure portion 228 to the edge of thetransistor 200 b. A cross section of this View B is the same as that ofthe View B from FIG. 2B, and both are represented by FIG. 2A. In FIG.2C, the drain portion 228 is shown as a parabola, a catenary, or aportion of an oval. Another way to describe this shape may be that eachelement resembles the letter “C” or a sidewise “U”. Each successivetransistor element from FIG. 2A is repeated around all sides of thedrain portion 228. If the View B segment is extended across the entiretransistor 200 b, then most transistor elements would repeat 4 times,except for drain portion 228 (twice) and the exposed portion of thefirst well 207 (three times). The transistor 200 b shape may also bedescribed as taking an oval and elongated version of the transistor ofFIG. 2B, and bending it half way. It is believed that the transistor 200b further maximizes the use of silicon real estate and performance andmaintains flexibility in terms of sizing. The HV LDMOS 200 b can be madelarger or smaller by increasing or decreasing the elongated sections.The drain structure portions 228 and 230 are located toward a center ofthe transistor. A drain pad 214 is shown in dotted lines over portionsof the drain structure 228 and 230.

Just as with FIG. 2B, FIGS. 2A and 2C are labeled with the same elementnumbers for the same element for ease of reference. Starting at acenterline of the drain structure portion 228, second field oxide 210 isa hollow “C” surrounding the drain structure portion 228. Under thesecond field oxide 210 is the third portion 209 c of the second well,with edges of the well shown in dotted lines. Note that only selectedtransistor elements from FIG. 2A are reflected in FIG. 2C because manyelements are under the sectional View A cut. Going outward toward thetop edge of the transistor 200 b, the next hollow “C” is the drainstructure portion 230, and then the first field oxide 208, followed bythe gate dielectric layer 240. The dotted line shown in the gatedielectric layer 240 denotes the edge of the first portion 209 a of thesecond well below the gate dielectric layer 240. Adjacent to the gatedielectric 240 is the source structures 224 and 226, followed by a smallportion of exposed first portion 209 a of the second well. As shown, thefirst portion 209 a of the second well extends from the dotted linebelow the gate dielectric 240 almost to the outer edge of the transistor200 b. The outermost section is exposed regions of the first well 207,with a small portion in the middle of the transistor 200 b. Note thatportions of the first well 207 are disposed below the entire ellipticaloverview and only a small portion is exposed.

In some embodiments, the opening of the “C” or “U” may be closed byenjoining the exposed portions of the first portion 209 a of the secondwell. In these embodiments, the exposed portions of the first portion209 a of the second well surrounds the entire transistor 200 b with asmall portion extending into the middle portion of the transistor 200 b.The exposed portion of the first well 207 surrounds the entiretransistor 200 b and does not extend into the middle portion of thetransistor 200 b.

In yet another embodiment, the opening of the “C” or “U” may be closedby enjoining source structure portions 226. The source structureportions 226 surround the entire transistor 200 b with a small portionextending into the middle portion of the transistor 200 b. The exposedportion of the second well 209 a and exposed portion of the first well207 surround the entire transistor 200 b and do not extend into themiddle portion of the transistor 200 b.

FIG. 3 is a plot of a hole current into the substrate modeled using acomparative HV LDMOS and the HV LDMOS 200 of the cross section of FIG.2A. The x-axis shows distance into the substrate from the drainstructure portion 230 to the substrate 201 as shown by cut line 235 onFIG. 2A. The y-axis shows a log of the hole current in amps per squarecentimeters. Dotted line 301 corresponds to a comparative HV LDMOShaving a second well having only first and second portions that do notextend past the first field oxide and cross the first well portion belowthe drain structure. Solid line 303 corresponds to the HV LDMOS 200having a second well having a U-shape as described herein.

At or around a top surface of the drain structure 230, neither linedepicts significant hole current and both lines quickly increases to ahigh volume within the drain structure 230. For line 301, the holecurrent increases slowly throughout the first well 207 and levels off ata relatively high value of more than 1 log amps per centimeter squared.For line 303, the hole current quickly reduces at about the anti-punchthrough layer 211, holds relatively steady across the first well portionsurround by the U-shape second well and increases inside the secondportion 209 b of the second well. However, the hole current decreasesrapidly at the substrate side edge of the second well to a negligiblecurrent past the second well. FIG. 3 shows that the HV LDMOS 200effectively directs the hole current across the transistor withoutsubstrate leakage.

FIG. 4 is a plot of a model electric potential across the cut line 235during transistor operation for the comparative HV LDMOS and the HVLDMOS 200 of FIG. 2A. The x-axis shows distance into the substrate fromthe drain structure portion 230 to the substrate 201 as shown by cutline 235 on FIG. 2A. The y-axis shows the electric potential in volts.For the comparative HV LDMOS as shown by dotted line 401, the potentialincreases slightly at the drain structure and quickly levels off at arelatively constant potential. For the HV LDMOS 200 as shown by solidline 403, the potential is low in the anti-punch through layer (layer211 of FIG. 2A), is higher in the portion of the first well 207 bsurrounded by the U-shape second well, and is low again in the secondportion 209 b of the second well (bottom of the U-shape). The potential403 increases into the first well under the second well and thesubstrate. The dip in potential around the second portion 209 b of thesecond well is a low potential conduit for the hole current. Below thesecond well, the potential increases by as much as 0.7 volts whichbiases the holes current to stay within the conduit. According to FIG.3, little or no hole current overcomes this potential barrier into thesubstrate.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are flowcharts of a method 500 for fabricating a highvoltage laterally diffused MOS semiconductor device, according tovarious aspects of the present disclosure. It should be noted that themethod 500 may be implemented in a complementary metal oxidesemiconductor (CMOS) technology process flow. Accordingly, it isunderstood that additional processes may be provided before, during, andafter the method 500, and some processes may only be briefly describedherein. FIG. 5B shows a portion of the method 500 according someembodiments of the present disclosure.

The method 500 begins with block 501 in which a semiconductor substrateis provided. The substrate has a first type of conductivity. Forexample, as shown in FIG. 6A, the substrate may be p-type as thesubstrate 601. In various examples, the substrate 601 is a lightly dopedsilicon wafer. The method 500 continues at block 503 in which n-typedopant is implanted into the lightly doped semiconductor substrate. FIG.6B shows a substrate 601 having buried layers 602 and 603 below a topsurface of the substrate 601. The substrate 601 is patterned first toprotect areas not intended to be exposed to implantation. Then n-typedopant, for example, phosphorus, is implanted into the substrate. A peakconcentration may be located at about 5 microns into the substrate 601.Buried layer 603 receives a higher dose than buried layer 602. Forexample, the buried layer 603 may have a peak dopant concentration atabout 1E16, while the buried layer 602 may have a peak dopantconcentration about half that of the buried layer 603. The top surfaceremains flat for subsequent epitaxial processes. After implanting, thepatterning is removed to result in the workpiece of FIG. 6B. In someembodiments, the workpiece is annealed at a high temperature of 800degrees Celsius to complete the formation of the buried layers.

In operation 505 of FIG. 5A, a first well region is formed having asecond type of conductivity, which is different from the first type ofconductivity of the substrate. As shown in FIG. 6C, for example, thefirst well 605 may be an n-well, such as the n-well (N-Drift) formedover the p-substrate 601. The first well 605 may be epitaxially grownover the substrate using epitaxial processes known in the art. Forexample, the first well 605 may be about 4 micrometers thick, or betweenabout 2 and about 5 micrometers thick. The epitaxial process for formingthe first well 605 have an anneal effect to diffuse the dopant fromburied layer 603 into the newly formed first well 605 such that theburied layer 603 becomes larger as shown in FIG. 6C.

The method 500 continues with block 507 in which a second well region isformed in the first well region. FIG. 5B shows the operations of block507 in more detail, and FIG. 6D shows the second well region 607 in thefirst well region 605. In operation 551, a sacrificial oxide isdeposited over the first well 605. The sacrificial oxide is subsequentlyremoved and serves to protect the top surface from implantation damage.In operation 553, a first portion 607 a of the second well 607 is formedby implanting a dopant of a first type of conductivity in the first well605. In operation 555, a third portion 607 c of the second well 607 isformed by implanting a dopant of a first type of conductivity in thefirst well 605. These operations 553 and 555 may require severalimplanting steps to disperse the dopant into the workpiece to asufficient depth, for example, at about 2 to 4 microns deep. Inoperation 557, a second portion 607 b of the second well 607 is formedby implanting a dopant of a first type of conductivity in the first well605. The second portion 607 b extends laterally from the first portion607 a to the third portion 607 c below the top surface of the first well605. The sacrificial oxide is removed in operation 559 by etching.Either operations 553, 555, and 557 may be formed first using a firstpattern, then the other ones may be formed using different patterns. Theimplantation may use substantially the same dopant concentrations atdifferent implantation energy levels to achieve varying depths, ordifferent concentrations and different energies.

In some embodiments, a first portion 607 a and a third portion 607 c ofa second well 607 is formed in one operation in the first well 605, anda second portion 607 b is formed in another operation. In other words,operations 553 and 555 are performed in the same process tool in thesame operation. The first portion 607 a of the second well 607 startsfrom the top surface of the first well 605 and extends down in the firstwell 605. A third portion 607 c of the second well 607 also starts fromthe top surface of the first well 605, but at a different location fromthe first portion 607 a. The first portion 607 a and third portion 607 cmay be formed in the same operation by implanting a p-type dopant, forexample, boron, into the first well 605 using one pattern having twoopenings. Then in a second operation using a different pattern, a secondportion 607 b of the second well 607 is formed in the first well 605.The second well have the first type of conductivity same as that of thesubstrate 601. The first and third portions and the second portion ofthe second well are formed by implanting a p-type dopant using differentpatterns at different energies. In order to penetrate the first well 605to a sufficient depth below the top surface, a higher energy is used forthe second portion 607 b. As shown in FIG. 6D, the resulting second wellhas a U-shape, but other variations are possible. For example, thesecond well may be an inverted II.

The method 500 continues with block 509 in which one or more insulatinglayers, also referred to as a field oxide, is formed on the workpiece.The insulating layers may include a dielectric, such as silicon oxide,nitride, or other suitable insulating materials. FIG. 6E shows a firstfield oxide 609 formed over and in the first well 605 b region that issurrounded by second well 607 and a second field oxide 610 formed overthe third portion 607 c of the second well. The field oxides 609 and 610may be formed by a thermal oxide process. The workpiece is patterned toprotect regions where the field oxide is undesirable and subjected to ahigh temperature, for example, about 500 degrees Celsius, in thepresence of oxygen and optionally water. When used, presence of waterspeed the oxide formation process.

In the next block 511 of method 500, an anti-punch through region, alsoreferred to as anti-punch through layer, is formed by doping orimplanting a region of the first well between the field oxides 609 and610. FIG. 6F shows the anti-punch through layer 611 below a top surfaceof the first well portion 605 b that is surrounded by the U-shapedsecond well 607. The anti-punch through layer 611 may be formed byimplanting phosphorus or phosphorus-containing dopants at a medium tohigh energy.

Referring back to FIG. 5A, in operation 513, a gate structure is builtover the workpiece. As shown in FIG. 6F, the gate structure 613 has alower dielectric layer 613 a and an upper electrode layer 613 b. Thegate structure 613 may overlie three areas: a first part of the gatestructure 613 overlies the edge of the insulating layer 609, a secondpart of the gate structure overlies the top surface of the first well605, and the third part of the gate structure overlies the first portionof the second well 607. The precise overlay of the gate structure to thethree areas is achieved by a process including photolithographypatterning and etching. One exemplary method for patterning the gatedielectric and electrode layers over the three areas is described below.A layer of photoresist is formed on the polysilicon electrode layer by asuitable process, such as spin-on coating, and then patterned to form apatterned photoresist feature by a proper lithography patterning method.The pattern of the photoresist can then be transferred by a dry etchingprocess to the underlying polysilicon layer and the gate dielectriclayer to form gate electrodes and gate dielectric, in a plurality ofprocessing steps and various proper sequences. The precise overlay ofthe gate structure to the field oxide, the first well, and the secondwell is controlled by the lithographic alignment procedure. Thephotoresist layer is stripped thereafter. In another embodiment, onlythe gate electrode layer is patterned. In another embodiment, a hardmask layer may be formed on the polysilicon layer. The patternedphotoresist layer is formed on the hard mask layer. The pattern of thephotoresist layer is transferred to the hard mask layer and thentransferred to the polysilicon layer to form the gate electrode. Thehard mask layer may include silicon nitride, silicon oxynitride, siliconcarbide, and/or other suitable dielectric materials, and may be formedusing a method such as CVD or PVD.

Referring back to FIG. 5A, the method 500 continues with block 515, inwhich a source region and a drain region are formed. As shown in FIG.6G, the source region 615 includes two regions 615 a and 615 b. A firstsource region 615 a may have the first type of conductivity; a secondsource region 615 b, formed next to the first source region 615 a, mayhave the second type of conductivity. For example, the first sourceregion 615 a is p-type, and the second source region 615 b is n-type orvice versa. The drain region 617 includes two regions 617 a and 617 b. Afirst drain region 617 a may have the first type of conductivity; asecond drain region 617 b, formed next to the first drain region 617 aacross the second field oxide 610 and the third portion 607 c of thesecond well, may have the second type of conductivity. For example, thefirst drain region 617 a is p-type, and the second drain region 617 b isn-type or vice versa. The first drain region 617 a is formed over theanti-punch through layer 611 that has a different type of conductivitythan the anti-punch through layer 611.

The first and second source and drain regions are formed by implantingn-type or p-type or both types of dopants in each of the regions.Portions may be implanted at the same time. In one example, regions 617a and 615 b are implanted at the same time; and regions 617 b and 615 aare implanted at the same time. In another example, all of the regionsare implanted using one type of dopant and only two regions areimplanted using another type of dopant. In still other examples, theregions are implanted at different times.

Referring back to FIG. 5A, contacts and interconnect structures areformed over the transistor in block 517. As shown in FIG. 6H, contactstructures 619, 620, 621, and 623 are formed over various features ofthe transistor. Contacts 619 and 620 each connects to one of the drainregions 617 a and 617 b. Contact 621 connects to the gate 613. Contact623 connects to the source regions 615 a and 615 b singly or together.An interlayer dielectric (ILD) 624 fills the space between the variouscontacts. After the contacts are formed, a first layer of interconnectsis complete after interconnects 625, 627, and 629 are formed.

The interconnect structure and contacts are formed of conductivematerials, such as aluminum, aluminum/silicon/copper alloy, titanium,titanium nitride, tungsten, polysilicon, metal silicide, or combinationsthereof, being referred to as aluminum interconnects. Aluminuminterconnects may be formed by a process including physical vapordeposition (or sputtering), chemical vapor deposition (CVD), orcombinations thereof. Other manufacturing techniques to form thealuminum interconnect may include photolithography processing andetching to pattern the conductive materials for vertical connection (viaand contact) and horizontal connection (conductive line). Alternatively,a copper multilayer interconnect may be used to form the metal patterns.The copper interconnect structure may include copper, copper alloy,titanium, titanium nitride, tantalum, tantalum nitride, tungsten,polysilicon, metal silicide, or combinations thereof. The copperinterconnect may be formed by a technique including CVD, sputtering,plating, or other suitable processes.

The ILD 624 includes silicon oxide. Alternatively or additionally, theILD 624 includes a material having a low dielectric constant, such as adielectric constant less than about 3.5. In one embodiment, thedielectric layer includes silicon dioxide, silicon nitride, siliconoxynitride, polyimide, spin-on glass (SOG), fluoride-doped silicateglass (FSG), carbon doped silicon oxide, Black Diamond® (AppliedMaterials of Santa Clara, Calif.), Xerogel, Aerogel, amorphousfluorinated carbon, Parylene, BCB (bis-benzocyclobutenes), SiLK (DowChemical, Midland, Mich.), polyimide, and/or other suitable materials.The dielectric layer may be formed by a technique including spin-on,CVD, or other suitable processes.

The contacts and interconnects are usually metal formed in an integratedprocess such as a damascene process. In a damascene process, a metalsuch as copper is used as conductive material for interconnection.Another metal or metal alloy may be additionally or alternatively usedfor various conductive features. Accordingly, silicon oxide, fluorinatedsilica glass, or low dielectric constant (k) materials can be used forthe ILD 624. During the damascene process, a trench is formed in adielectric layer, and copper is filled in the trench. Chemicalmechanical polishing (CMP) technique is implemented afterward to etchback and planarize the substrate surface.

Among various embodiments, the present structure provides an enhancedperforming high voltage device, configured as a lateral diffused MOS (HVLDMOS) formed in a tri-well structure (a small n-well in an extendedp-type well inside an n-type well) within the substrate with ananti-punch through layer and a buried layer below the n-type well, whichreduces substrate leakage current to almost zero. The drain region isseparated into two regions, one within the small n-well and onecontacting the outer n-type well such that the substrate is availablefor electric potential lines during when a high drain voltage isapplied.

One aspect of this description relates to a method for fabricating ahigh voltage semiconductor transistor. The method includes forming aburied layer having a second type of conductivity in a portion of asemiconductor substrate, wherein the semiconductor substrate has a firsttype of conductivity. The method further includes epitaxially growing adoped first well region over the substrate, the first well region havingthe second type of conductivity different from the first type ofconductivity. The method further includes doping a first portion and athird portion of a second well region having a first type ofconductivity in the first well region, the first portion and the thirdportion occupying a region starting from the top surface of the firstwell region and extending down in the first well region. The methodfurther includes doping a second portion of the second well region inthe first well region, the second portion extending laterally from thefirst portion to the third portion under the top surface of the firstwell region, wherein the first portion, the second portion, and thethird portion of the second well form a U-shaped second well region. Themethod further includes thermally growing a first insulating layer inand over a first well portion within the U-shape of the second wellregion and a second insulating layer on the substrate over the thirdportion of the second well region. The method further includes doping ananti-punch through region in the first well region within the U-shape ofthe second well region. The method further includes forming a gatestructure on the substrate, the gate structure having a first partoverlying the first insulating layer, a second part overlying the firstwell region, and a third part overlying the first portion of the secondwell region. The method further includes forming a source region in thefirst portion of the second well region on an opposite side of the gatestructure from the first insulating layer. The method further includesforming a drain region in the first well region, wherein a first portionof the drain region is formed over the anti-punch through region and asecond portion of the drain region is disposed outside of the secondwell region.

Another aspect of this description relates to a method of making a highvoltage semiconductor transistor. The method includes growing a firstwell region over a semiconductor substrate, wherein the first wellregion has a first type of conductivity. The method further includesimplanting a second well region in the first well region, the secondwell region having a second type of conductivity opposite the first typeof conductivity. Implanting the second well region includes implanting afirst portion extending parallel to a top surface of the first wellregion, implanting a second portion extending from a first end of thefirst portion to the top surface of the first well region, andimplanting a third portion extending from a second end of the firstportion, opposite the first end, to the top surface of the first wellregion, wherein the second well defines an enclosed portion of the firstwell region surrounded by the second well region. The method furtherincludes forming an insulating structure over the enclosed portion andseparated from the second well region. The method further includesforming a gate structure near the insulating structure over the enclosedportion and partially over the first portion of the second well region.The method further includes forming a drain region in the first wellregion across the insulating structure from the gate structure, whereinthe drain region comprises a first drain portion in the enclosed portionand a second drain portion outside the enclosed portion.

Still another aspect of this description relates to a method of making ahigh voltage semiconductor transistor. The method includes implanting ann-type buried layer in a lightly-doped p-type substrate, wherein then-type buried layer includes a first portion and a second portion. Themethod further includes growing an n-type first well region over thesubstrate, the first well region having a lower dopant concentrationthan the buried layer, wherein the second portion of the buried layer ispartially in the first well region. The method further includesimplanting a p-type second well region in the first well region, whereinthe second well region has a U-shape in a cross section taken in adirection perpendicular to a top surface of the lightly doped substrate,and both ends of the U-shape extend to a top surface of the first wellregion and define an enclosed portion of the first well region. Themethod further includes forming a first insulating structure in theenclosed portion of the first well region. The method further includesforming a second insulating structure over a first end of the U-shape ofthe second well region. The method further includes forming a gatestructure over the first well region and over a second end of theU-shape of the second well region, wherein the gate structure overlaysthe first insulating structure. The method further includes forming adrain region in the first well region across the first insulatingstructure from the gate structure. Forming the drain region includesimplanting a first drain portion between the first insulating structureand the second insulating structure, and implanting a second drainportion across the second insulating structure from the first drainportion, wherein the second drain portion is over the portion of theburied layer in the first well region. The method further includesimplanting an anti-punch through region below the first drain portion.

The foregoing has outlined features of several embodiments. Thoseskilled in the art should appreciate that they may readily use thepresent disclosure as a basis for designing or modifying other processesand structures for carrying out the same purposes and/or achieving thesame advantages of the embodiments introduced herein. Those skilled inthe art should also realize that such equivalent constructions do notdepart from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure, and thatthey may make various changes, substitutions and alterations hereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A high voltage semiconductor transistor,comprising: a semiconductor substrate having a first type ofconductivity; a first well region having a second type of conductivityand formed over the semiconductor substrate; a second well region in thefirst well region and having the first type of conductivity; a firstinsulating structure over the first well region; a gate structureadjacent the first insulating structure and between a source region anda drain region; the drain region comprising a first drain portionbetween the first insulating structure and a second insulating structureand a second drain portion across the second insulating structure fromthe first drain portion; and the source region disposed on a side of thegate structure opposite from the drain region.
 2. The transistor ofclaim 1, wherein the second well region has a U-shape in a cross sectionand extends from an interface with the source region to an interfacewith the second insulating structure, and the cross section is taken ina direction perpendicular to a top surface of the semiconductorsubstrate.
 3. The transistor of claim 1, wherein the gate structureincludes a gate dielectric layer and a gate electrode layer, wherein thegate electrode layer is disposed on a surface of the first insulatingstructure.
 4. The transistor of claim 1, wherein the first drain portionhas the first type of conductivity and the second drain portion has thesecond type of conductivity.
 5. The transistor of claim 1, wherein thesource region has a first source portion and a second source portion,the second source portion abutting the first source portion.
 6. Thetransistor of claim 5, wherein the first source portion has the firsttype of conductivity and the second source portion has the second typeof conductivity, and wherein the first drain portion has the first typeof conductivity and the second drain portion has the second type ofconductivity.
 7. The transistor of claim 1, further comprising: a buriedlayer on the semiconductor substrate under the first well region, theburied layer having the second type of conductivity.
 8. The transistorof claim 7, wherein the buried layer has a first portion with a firstdopant concentration and a second portion with a second dopantconcentration, the first dopant concentration being greater than thesecond dopant concentration.
 9. The transistor of claim 8, wherein thefirst portion of the buried layer underlies the second drain portion,and wherein the second portion of the buried layer underlies the firstinsulating structure and the source region.
 10. A transistor,comprising: a gate structure having a gate dielectric layer and anoverlying gate electrode layer; a source structure disposed on a firstside of the gate structure; a drain structure disposed on a second sideof the gate structure opposite the first side; an insulating layerdisposed between the drain structure and the gate structure; a firstportion of a buried layer under the drain structure, wherein the firstportion has a dopant of a first type of conductivity at a firstconcentration; and a second portion of the buried layer under the gatestructure and the source structure, wherein the second portion has adopant of the first type of conductivity at a second concentration, thesecond concentration less than the first concentration.
 11. Thetransistor of claim 10, further comprising: an n-drift well over theburied layer and a p-body well over the buried layer.
 12. The transistorof claim 10, wherein the drain structure includes a first drain regionand a second drain region, the first and second drain regions separatedby a first distance.
 13. The transistor of claim 12, wherein the firstportion of the buried layer underlies the first drain region and not thesecond drain region.
 14. The transistor of claim 12, wherein anotherinsulating layer is disposed in the first distance.
 15. The transistorof claim 10, further comprising: an anti-punch through layer under aportion of the drain structure.
 16. A transistor, comprising: asemiconductor substrate having a first type of conductivity; a firstwell region having a second type of conductivity and formed over thesemiconductor substrate; a second well region in the first well regionand having the first type of conductivity, the second well region havinga U-shape in a cross section and extending from a source region to afirst insulating structure disposed on the semiconductor substrateadjacent a drain region, and the cross section is taken in a directionperpendicular to a top surface of the semiconductor substrate; a secondinsulating structure over the first well region and at least a portionof the U-shape of the second well region and not contacting the secondwell region; a gate structure between the source and drain; the drainregion across the second insulating structure from the gate structure,the drain region comprising a first drain portion between the firstinsulating structure and the second insulating structure and a seconddrain portion across the first insulating structure from the first drainportion; and the source region disposed on a side of the gate structureopposite from the drain region.
 17. The transistor of claim 16, whereinthe gate structure and the drain region have one of a conic sectionshape and a catenary shape in a top view.
 18. The transistor of claim16, wherein the first drain portion and the second drain portion differin dopant conductivity type.
 19. The transistor of claim 16, wherein ananti-punch through layer is disposed under the first drain portion. 20.The transistor of claim 16, wherein the gate structure is disposedpartially on the first insulating structure.